AUTHOR=Yu Baeksan 

TITLE=Kindergarten Obesity and Academic Achievement: The Mediating Role of Weight Bias

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.640474

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2021.640474

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=<p>This study draws the attention towards the importance of reducing weight discrimination against children for their educational success, as an issue of social justice. We investigate the consequences of early-onset obesity identifying the mediating mechanisms in the relationship between childhood obesity and academic achievement. To do so, we employ the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort (kindergarten to fifth grade) in the US (ECLS-K: 2011) and apply a parallel process latent growth model with a combination of quasi-experiments and econometrics. The results of this study suggest that teachers may serve as a significant source of weight bias, especially for girls (<italic>B</italic> = −0.09, 95% BC CI [−2.37 to −0.46]).</p>